Female teacher banned for life after affair with sixth-former at school and then again at uni

A young teacher who kissed a sixth-former at a top boarding school — and then visited him at uni for sex — has been banned from the classroom for life.

Design and tech tutor Ruth Vaughan, 26, snogged the teen at the leavers’ ball of Oakham School in Rutland.

After exchanging numbers, they spent the summer texting before Loughborough grad Ms Vaughan going to his uni for sex, a professional conduct panel hearing was told.

The sixth-former, known only as “Student A”, claimed he began a sexual relationship with her in July 2013.

But Ms Vaughan, who gave evidence via video link from Saudi Arabia where she now lives, insisted she did not have sex with Student A until his second week of uni.

She did accept the relationship was inappropriate even though the teenager had left the school, and expressed regret for her actions.

Ms Vaughan graduated from Loughborough with a degree in Design and Engineering — and was working at the £30,000-a-year Rutland school as a DT teacher.

While she never taught Student A, she got to know him when she helped with the co-ed school’s cadet force.

The panel hearing found her guilty of unacceptable professional conduct and banned her indefinitely from teaching in any school, sixth-form college, youth accommodation or children’s home in England.

Hearing chairman Alan Meyrick said: “The panel considered that the relationship with Student A was borne out of the position of trust that Miss Vaughan was in as a teacher in Student A’s school – despite him having recently left.

“Miss Vaughan’s obligations would not have changed overnight. This was indicated by the school policy preventing social media interactions with former pupils until September 1 after the pupil left the school.

“If such interaction was prevented, it is apparent that a relationship would also have been a serious breach of the school’s policies, practices and ethos.”

While he explained there was no indication Student A was vulnerable, he added: “I am satisfied that the conduct of Miss Vaughan fell significantly short of the standards expected of the profession.”